Help Ahmed & his family leave Gaza

[Note: Since Go Fund Me only operates in certain countries, this has been set up by Julia on behalf of Ahmed. All funds will be transferred to him as soon as possible on a rolling basis.]

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My Name is Ahmed Shehada, I am a 36 year old doctor who has studied, worked, and lived my whole life in Gaza, Palestine

Throughout my life the occupation has never given us the chance to live a normal life, I had to forget a lot of my dreams in order to cope with the life we were forced to live.

We have survived several military escalations since my childhood, but this is by far the most brutal war we have ever experienced, and it tears my heart apart seeing my two children who are 7 and 2 living through this again.

During this war, we have been through life-threatening situations several times, and thankfully we have survived them. We left our home and moved from place to place seeking safety for our family, and we have been living in a tent for several months.

All I want in this life is to be able to provide a better life for my children. They are the reason why we are now trying to leave Gaza to build a new life and a better future for our family. Unfortunately, the fees for leaving Gaza right now is high beyond imagination.

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I met Ahmed the first time I went to Gaza to deliver school supplies to children in 2010, and despite Gaza’s isolation, I was lucky to return and see him in 2011, and again 2013 when I went to work with UNRWA. Ahmed has the kindest soul and and has always just tried to do good in the world, never asking for anything.

Since the moment I met him, I was in awe of all he had accomplished despite the circumstances in Gaza. He learned multiple languages (his English and German are impeccable!) in hopes of studying medicine abroad. Unfortunately that wasn’t possible, so he did the best he could and became a doctor in Gaza and married the love of his life, Hadeel. Together they have raised a beautiful family and done their best despite it all.

We have kept in touch - and not always very well - but always checked in when it was important. After the war in Gaza began, I reached out constantly making sure he, Hadeel, Neshan, and Joumana were ok. For a while they were and when I asked Ahmed early on if he would leave Gaza with things getting worse, he always said no - it was home. The situation now though is so bad, his plans have changed. His home is badly damaged (as are the homes of the rest of his family), and they’re living in a tent just trying to do the best they can. He’s made the decision to leave - or if that’s not possible, to try to rebuild - and I want to do what I can to enable that. I know this is now the story for so many, but every little bit helps.